Note: the following
review has been updated to include
a comparison between the Dolby Digital and DTS versions.

"That boy is
alive. And we are gonna send someone to find him. And we're gonna
get him the hell out of there."

It's hard to comprehend, as we live out our daily lives in today's
modern world of convenience, the kind of sacrifice that was asked of
an entire generation of Americans, not so very long ago. 50 years
seems like forever, but almost all of us have family stories of
World War II, and how it affected our grandparents and eldest
relatives. I remember, as I watched Saving
Private Ryan that first time in the theater, that it was
all too easy to imagine myself and my friends in that situation. My
generation, the so-called Generation X, has never been tested like
that. We've had no World Wars, no Vietnams. We've had no challenges
of our mettle. How would we respond in that situation? How would I
respond? Would we be willing to make the ultimate sacrifice to
preserve our freedom? That, I think, is the real genius of Steven
Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan.
I don't think you can sit through this film and not ask yourself, "What
would I do in that situation?"

The film starts on perhaps the most important day of the war - the
D-Day invasion on June 6th, 1944. We watch as thousands of Average
Joes storm the beach at Normandy, only to be cut to pieces in a hail
of German machine-gun bullets and mortar fire. In the ensuing chaos,
small groups of men manage to make their way up the beach. And faced
with the choice of fighting for a chance at survival by breaking
through the German lines of defense, or simply dying on the beach,
slowly the American and Allied soldiers claw their way to victory.

One such group of men is led by Captain John Miller (Tom Hanks).
After scaling the cliffs and overcoming the odds in the first wave
of the invasion, Miller and his men are given a seemingly ridiculous
mission. It seems that somewhere in midst of the vast war, a private
named Ryan has lost three of his brothers in action. The Army has
decided to spare his mother the agony of losing all her sons, so
Miller and his men are ordered to go deep behind enemy lines in
France, to find Ryan and bring him home. Along the way, they'll risk
their lives in what seems a hopeless task, all the while thinking
that no one soldier could possibly be worth it.

Director Steven Spielberg has, with this film, created perhaps the
single greatest testament to that generation, and that specific day,
yet captured on film. Certainly, (for better or worse) Saving
Private Ryan will be remembered by more people that any
other record of those dark days. It is also arguably the most
accurate, visceral account of the events of D-Day. Spielberg chose
wisely to eschew a traditional Hollywood filmmaking style for this
film, opting instead for a gritty, hand-held, combat-camera feel to
the picture. The result, particularly the first 30 minutes (which
recreates the invasion at Normandy itself), is one of the most
effective pieces of war filmmaking you will ever see. Spielberg
places you right in the midst of the action with Miller and his men,
with gunfire whizzing all around. You experience your own small form
of shell shock, as you watch wave after wave of young men being shot
down and blown to bits.

Once the invasion ends, and we focus more on the story of the film
- the actual search for Ryan - the characters become all too human.
Hanks, Tom Sizemore, Edward Burns, Matt Damon and the rest all fit
together perfectly. We come to understand each of their characters,
their fears, and the unspoken bond they begin to develop with each
other. These are ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances,
fighting because they must - fighting because freedom doesn't come
free, and the price of freedom must be paid in blood.

Saving Private Ryan is the
first of Steven Spielberg's true blockbusters to find its way to
DVD, and it would be hard to find a film more perfectly tailored to
the format. The film simply looks terrific, and sounds even better.
It's presented in its original 1.85:1 widescreen aspect ratio, and
is enhanced for anamorphic capable displays. The print used for the
new high-definition transfer (from which these DVDs were mastered)
is of beautiful quality. You'll see very little dust and dirt. The
print does exhibit a certain degree of coarse grain, but this is
entirely by design. That effect, combined with the hand-held
camerawork, and the always slightly muted, washed-out color, creates
a very realistic, gritty, newsreel look to the film. But despite the
grain, fast action and movement, you'll see very little digital
artifacting, and there is only slight edge enhancement visible. At
all times, the contrast is excellent, as is level of detail in the
dark picture areas. In fact, there's crisp detail everywhere to be
seen - just look at the footage of the battle scene, with its
high-speed shutter, and slow motion moments. You can see every clump
of dirt blown into the air by explosions.

As good as the picture is however, it's the audio that really
impresses on both versions of this disc. The Dolby Digital 5.1
surround sound version is an all-out assault on your ears. The mix
is crisp and clean, with deep, rich bass. The dialogue sounds
natural, and John Williams' haunting but hopeful score is woven
lightly though it all. And the rear channels are given a tremendous
workout, both dazzling you with the gee-whiz directionality of
gunfire, and the numbing thump of exploding bombs, and creating
perfect ambient fill. This is a very spatial mix, creating a very
nice three-dimensional sound experience. You'll hear the sound of a
ricochet right next to you, and hear the screams of soldiers off in
the distance as well. And we're just talking about the first 30
minutes! The downpour of a rainstorm is perfectly rendered in
chapter 8, and you can almost feel the Mustang fighters as they roar
by overheard in chapter 19.

Moving on to the DTS 5.1 version, I would have thought it would be
hard to improve on the Dolby Digital mix, but DTS manages to do just
that. The difference isn't one most people are going to really
appreciate, but if you have good sound equipment, you'll notice that
the DTS mix is more natural sounding. If Dolby Digital gives you
gee-whiz directionality, DTS creates a more natural, seamless
360-degree audio environment. The audio is slightly clearer sounding
- easier on the ears, but just as enveloping, if not more so. And
you'll hear more subtlety in the surround sound mix - for example,
the faint popping of more distant gunfire is clearer and more
pronounced. Listen to the end of the battle sequence, as Capt.
Miller drinks from his canteen and his hand shakes slightly - the
major thrust of the battle is over, but you'll hear pockets of
fighting still going on in the distance. Whichever audio version of
this film you buy, this is wonderful DVD sound, period.

As far as extras, this title isn't exactly loaded... but what you
do get is of excellent quality. You start off with a series of
subtle (and tastefully done) animated menus screens, featuring key
images from the film. There are two theatrical trailers (the
original and re-release versions), both of which look great, and are
presented in full 5.1 audio. There is a brief message from the
director, in which he reveals his motivations for making the film,
and promotes the D-Day Museum. There are pages and pages of cast and
crew bios, and production notes. But my favorite supplement is a
really good documentary on the making of the film. It runs some 25
minutes, and includes interviews with the cast and crew, historian
Stephen Ambrose (author of the acclaimed Citizen
Soldiers), and several survivors of the actual D-Day
invasion. It also features authentic footage of the real battles,
interviews with the family the story was based on, and even clips
from Spielberg's earliest war movies, made as a teenager. It's
important to note that this documentary was omitted on the DTS
version, due to the greater space requirements of the DTS sound data
(the DTS version's layer switch also occurs a couple of minutes
earlier in chapter 12).

I don't think Spielberg has ever recorded a commentary track for
any of his films, but I sure wish he would have started with this
one. I would have loved to hear the stories - can you imagine
listening to him talk with Hanks, Ambrose, and Dale Dye (the former
Marine Captain who whipped the actors into convincing soldiers for
the film)? That would have been cool. Still, commentary or not, what
you get here is enough to do the job - even if it just whets your
appetite for more.

Saving Private Ryan is simply
an amazing film - a vivid, emotion-wrenching experience that
everyone should undergo at least once. And there can be no better
way to experience it than on DVD. DreamWorks has produced yet
another satisfying entry in their superb (if small) line of discs. I
must say, it's about time Spielberg acknowledged this format. And
thankfully, whichever version you choose, this is one DVD you will
definitely NOT want to miss.